The Nail Salon

I saw a fascinating exchange in a nail salon today. 

A woman with fancy custom acrylic nails came in wanting a basic fill-in. Her German was non-existent, though, so she and the salon owner had a difficult time communicating. They stumbled through their negotiations but eventually agreed on a service, price, and wait time. 

Except that nail salons are often understaffed and hectic environments. Some clients have appointments, others walk-in expecting immediate service. 

The woman with fancy nails was told that, actually, she might need to wait longer. 

And her response was instantly incredulous, “No, that’s not going to work, I’ve already waited for twenty minutes.” 

She simply wasn’t having it. 

I watched the tense silence that stretched between this woman and the salon owners, a game of chicken, anxious to see who would blink first. 

The salon owner gave in.

By the time I finished and paid, they were engaged in that intimate aesthetician-client chatter: hushed whispers, giggling, debate about beauty products. 

For the rest of the day, I kept thinking about the woman with the fancy nails and how she refused to be inconvenienced by a longer wait, how she had spoken up and stood her ground. 

Had she been incredibly rude, or was she simply sticking up for herself? 

Does it matter that the two modes often look the same?